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Just like that, it seemed his vacation away from Bellum was over.
Vandrad hadn’t expected any kind of letter or message really ever while he was in Fairy Tail. The only person that actively knew where he was at any one point was Mercury and frankly, if she wanted to get in contact with him, she would make it a point to show up. But that was only in the case if she were to find a job that would be good for the two of them. Otherwise, he expected her to be at the training room every other morning, ready to spar. So it came as a surprise, as the Prince of Bellum came down the stairs, when the fairies at the front desk called to him and claimed to have a letter for him. He’d been curious, downright suspicious, but not necessarily of the attending creatures. He took the letter, mumbling a quick thanks, before he walked over to the dining area and sat himself down.
And it was a good thing he had sat down too because the letter addressed to him would have knocked him right off his feet. It had come in an unmarked envelope, lacking any return address or stamp but the minute he tore off the top and unfolded the parchment, he recognized the paper almost instantly. He’d handled it several times over the course of his life and as he turned it around to read it, he found the seal of his family’s crest near the top and the fine, curving calligraphy of his mother’s handwriting.
“Dear Vandrad,
You know, I have to admit I’m quite impressed. It took me a whole month to figure out where you had taken up residence in that backwater nation. Your uncle and cousins were convinced it would take five days, perhaps a week. But you hid yourself well, my son and for that, I must say that I’m quite proud. Not many can pull the wool over your dear mother’s eyes.
But alas, you have been found out. And while I do not condemn your desire to seek out further information about your father, I cannot not condone your actions either. Leaving without a note or a simple goodbye goes against the manners I know your teachers put upon you, let alone your superiors in the military. I know my admission came at a shocking time in your life – you are nearly forty now, Lord how the years have gone by – but if you had stayed, I would have opened up more about it in time. It is not an easy thing for a mother to admit the scandalous actions of her past and, as you are fully aware, my inclination to physically connect with a man is something I wish to leave behind me. But I digress.
If you wish to continue your search for more information, I shall not hinder you. I am sure that you’ve sat there wondering if I was laying informational traps to sic my agents upon you and bring you back home by force. As much as the idea entertains me, I cannot afford to throw men’s lives away by throwing them at you. I know who my son is and I know, loyal soldiers of Bellum or not, you will not stay your hand if you are threatened. But as I understand it, you’ve been keeping your origin a secret. I imagine that has been quite the challenge for you so I commend you undertaking such a trial.
Yet I did not pen this letter merely as a means of reconnecting after our month apart. There is a ball tomorrow evening, though I believe it will be the evening of the morning you receive this. And as much as I wish I could explain away your absence, I cannot. I shall require you to return to Bellum to attend said gala for the sake of formality. While I do not wish to come across as intimidating, I do hope you’ll take into consideration that I merely sent this letter rather than sent a royal escort. But do know that they are housed within Magnolia and should the clock strike twelve and you have not left for Bellum, they will come and request your attendance in a far grander gesture. For both our sakes, I hope you will not push the matter. I’ll see you tonight, my love.
Duchess Themesycia du Wolff
The Prince of Bellum hissed between his teeth, agitated as he finished the letter. Blast it to Hell – somehow, she had found him. It wasn’t the worst-case scenario; she had listed exactly what that was in her letter. But he had been doing his best to keep his identity under wraps. The only person that he could recall knowing it fully was Mercury and that was only allegedly. She had never confirmed or denied that she had heard him in the Sun Tower, though the very next job they went upon had seemed to be subtle tease at him, even if unintentionally. He wasn’t concerned about her letting the news out – it wouldn’t be beneficial or amusing to her to do so. Plus they were… amiable rivals at this point. Revealing who he was would rob her of further entertainment and challenge or so he assumed.
Whatever the case, she had found him. And if her letter was to be believed – and he did – she required his return that very instant. He sighed as he crumpled the letter up into his hand, closing his fingers around it until it was only a small ball. A small pulse of energy from his palm incinerated the paper orb, reducing it to mere ashes. One day back in Bellum, that’s all she had said. He would attend the ball that night and be back on his way by tomorrow morning. That was easy, wasn’t it?
Nothing ever was with his mother but what other choice did he have? After destroying the evidence of the letter, he slid out of the chair and headed back to his room. If he was only going to be gone half a day, he didn’t require a lot. All of his royal outfits were back in Bellum anyways, so it wasn’t like he was tracking a pack of laundry with him. Oddly enough, there wasn’t any single item that called out to him to bring. Almost in a witless move, he grabbed the electronic pad that Mercury had given him and packed that in a small bag to take with him. If anything, he could use it to browse the Lacrimanet and perhaps continue on his own personal research.
Before he left, he made sure to tell the fairies up front that he would be gone for perhaps a day to run an errand back to his hometown. No more questions really asked; they simply marked it down and let him know they’d let the higher ups know about it. And with that he left, rocketing up into the sky and off back home. It was a fairly short trip, considering. Back when he had flown to Fiore, it had definitely felt much longer. But now that he was a bit stronger and was more in tune with his magic, it seemed his flight was more rapid as well. Before long, he had passed the outlying border of Bellum and soon the du Wolff estate would be in sight.
In terms of size, it was quite the gargantuan setting. It was easily one of the smaller ‘estates’ in Bellum but no doubt anyone from Fiore would balk at calling it anything less than a palace. Set on an island surrounded by waterfalls, the du Wolff estate rose off the land naturally, merging stone and stone together as if they were one. A crescent-shaped harbor sat on the bottom part of the island, where several fishing boats docked and embarked from. Several buildings were built into the stony wall that rose to the royal estate, housing citizens of the small port town. On either end of the crescent were two lighthouses burning with open flames and set against intricate crystals. The center of the wall was embedded with a copper configuration that bore the family sigil of du Wolff in its most center circle. Up on the upper echelon of the grounds were several other buildings, mainly homes for the estate staff. Two massive stone bridges extended out from this mid-tier section to the lands past the waterfalls, so that vehicles and people could come and go. And finally, on the upper-most level was the mansion, exquisitely designed out of magic to look both natural and forged in nature. It easily rivaled some of the bigger castles in Fiore without shame.
Vandrad was greeted by the house workers, who were quite excited to see his return. They caught up with him, mostly about how his mother had been worried about his running off. But as he questioned them to when the ball actually started, they seemed quite stunned. It was then he learned the truth of the matter – the ball was not that night as his mother had led him to believe. In fact, it was the next day entirely. And it wasn’t some gathering of nobles and family members like she had certainly hinted at.
No, it was one of her old traditions that she came about every year or so. Yet another attempt to marry him off.
He had protested and demanded to know where the woman was, only to be told she was out for the evening and wouldn’t return until the ball the next day. Clever old bat – she knew he would confirm the news and demand answers from her, so she removed herself from the equation. He grumbled and thought about simply leaving to spite her… but then quickly remembered what would happen if he did. With an agitated groan, he went inside his birth home and opted to simply accept that two days would simply have to do. Oh but wait, there was more!
The night went by fairly uneventfully. The maids and servants of the manor sought him out every occasion they had to talk and catch up and Vandrad had to keep ushering them away, not wanting to be disturbed. By the next morning, he was ready to get himself ready and simply get the whole circus over with. He managed to get through most of his morning routine before the tailor came to fetch him, alerting him that the ball started in less than two hours and he hadn’t been fitted yet. Apparently the outfits in his room weren’t going to do; he needed something brand new to impress whatever woman his mother had managed to scrounge up. As he walked into the room, a familiar young face turned to meet his gaze.
“Well if it isn’t Uncle Van. How’s it hanging, old man?” A brash, blond man stood in the center of a pedestal, with semi-circle of mirrors reflecting his image. Crimson red eyes flickered with amusement as he adjusted the red tie on his collar.
Vandrad snorted. "Bartrand. In your usual chipper mood as always,” he replied as he went and stood on his own dressing pedestal.
“Well you know me, old man. Always a huge fan of getting dolled up and listening to old bats talk about unimportant shit for hours on end,” the twenty-year old man replied as he finished tying his tie. He pulled the cape over the rest of his suit; an elegant black fabric tail with fur lined along the collar of it. “But enough about me. I hear you’ve been playing hooky in Bellum lately. Ran off to… what was it? Minstrel?”
So his family had been talking. How annoying. "It’s not anyone’s business but my own,” he said. The tailor came up and looked Vandrad over before snapping his fingers and waving a loom of white cloth at him. Much like it had in Rose Garden, the fabric wound around him tight and then pulled to a close and melded to his skin. A pure, clean white royal tuxedo now covered his body, with blue stripes running the length of the legs and down across the boots. Golden fringe embraced the ribs of the suit and ruffle pauldrons of the same shining gold hung loosely over his shoulders. Vandrad took one look at it and did his best to hide his sneer. "All this for something so ridiculous.”
“Ah, come on uncle. Not everything can be as fun as a battlefield,” Bartrand said, giving the older man a knock on the shoulder before heading for the door. “I’ll see you in a bit!”
Time seemed to slow and speed up all at once. The Prince of Bellum felt he was standing still but he continued to move, being greeted by family members as they arrived. Before he even knew what was happening, the ball was completely in motion. Half of a full orchestra lined the exquisite quartz ballroom. The hard crystal made up the entirety of the room, from the intricately shaped pillars to the ceiling etched with fantastical images. Chandeliers of rose quartz hung down over the entirety of the area, their warm hue keeping the entirety of the massive room comfortable.
He didn’t even get a chance to relax. He was handing out greetings to people as they came up to him and then, before he had a chance to decline, he was pulled out to the dance floor to take part in a waltz as the orchestra played into it. He sighed softly as the woman in front of him chattered away, wanting nothing more than to be anywhere else.
But at least it couldn’t get worse, right?